It’s been almost a month since we returned home from our now-infamous treasure hunting adventure. We still aren’t ready to delve back into Forrest’s poem — honestly, we aren’t even sure we EVER will be — but we wanted to compile a [probably not very] brief guide to Forrest Fenn and his Rocky Mountain treasure for all of you future treasure hunters.
Listen, y’all. Our treasure hunting trip was an experience of a lifetime. We totally get your excuses, because we’ve been there too: Budget constraints, limited vacation time, and (at least for me) a debilitating fear of bears. But this trip changed our lives and instilled in us a new sense of adventure with which we approach all our days. So get out there! Who knows? Maybe you’ll find more than memories in those hills… :)
Without further ado. We give you the ZBC Field Guide to Forrest Fenn's Treasure:
Part One: A Brief History of Forrest Fenn
Forrest Fenn is an eccentric 85-year-old millionaire who, back in circa 2009-2010 hid a small treasure chest containing $1-3 million worth of ancient artifacts (think gold and jade) somewhere in the Rocky Mountains. Forrest grew up in Texas, served in the Air Force for many years, and finally settled with his family in Sante Fe, New Mexico, where he was a self-taught art dealer. Years later, after surviving what the doctors had called terminal cancer back in the 90’s, Forrest was determined to make sure he instilled a sense of adventure in the younger generation. In his words, he wanted to get kids off of their “texting machines” and out into nature.
And he succeeded. By his own estimates (taken from several interviews), about 100,000 people have searched (as of yet, to no avail) for Forrest’s hidden gold. His hidden treasure was initially introduced to the public in his memoir “The Thrill of the Chase,” which was released in 2010 and currently has 183 copies available for $35 each HERE. For $60ish you can snag a copy from AMAZON. Or, if you want to go our [cheap] route, you can put in an inter-library loan request and read it free of charge from New York Public Library. This book contains the poem and, according to Forrest, some subtle (though not intentionally placed) hints.
In 2013, Forrest released his second book, this one entitled “Too Far to Walk” (a particularly tricky phrase from his poem). This book is also available online: HERE for $55 or AMAZON for $85. No luck with inter-library loans on this one. We found this book to be slightly less helpful than the first, with the exception of the prologue, but every bit as entertaining! It contains the only Forrest-approved treasure map. Don't get too excited though — no “X” to mark the spot here!
One quick side note: Back when Forrest was told he was dying of cancer, he decided that, if he was going to die, he was going to die in his own way and in his own place. His plan was to take his treasure with him, go to the location where it is currently hidden, and die alongside his gold in a refuge hemmed in by trees and animals and mountains. (Brian, Zach, and I had a lively conversation during one of our searches about whether or not we would reach into a crevice with a decaying and/or skeletal body for $2 million. We finally decided that Forrest must have assumed the treasure would not be found until at least his skin and hair were gone. We are just thankful, for more reasons than one, that Forrest is still living.)
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